The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA), known as the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) until March 2022, is a

private company limited by shares A private company limited by shares is a class of private limited company incorporated under the laws of England and Wales, Northern Ireland, Scotland, certain Commonwealth countries, and the Republic of Ireland. It has shareholders with l ...

wholly owned by the

Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy The secretary of state for business, energy and industrial strategy, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. The incumbent is a memb ...

. It is responsible for maximising the economic recovery of

oil An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...

from the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian ...

. It is empowered to license and regulate activity in relation to oil and gas in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

, including oil and gas exploration,

carbon capture and storage Carbon capture and storage (CCS) or carbon capture and sequestration is the process of capturing carbon dioxide (CO2) before it enters the atmosphere, transporting it, and storing it (carbon sequestration) for centuries or millennia. Usually th ...

, and offshore

gas storage Natural gas is a commodity that can be stored for an indefinite period of time in natural gas storage facilities for later consumption. Usage Gas storage is principally used to meet load variations. Gas is injected into storage during periods o ...

. The NSTA’s role is to take the steps necessary to: Established in April 2015 as an

executive agency An executive agency is a part of a government department that is treated as managerially and budgetarily separate, to carry out some part of the executive functions of the United Kingdom government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government or N ...

of the

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) is a department of His Majesty's Government. The department was formed during a machinery of government change on 14 July 2016, following Theresa May's appointment as Prim ...

, on 1 October 2016 the Oil and Gas Authority was incorporated as a Government Company, with the

the sole shareholder and headquartered in

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), a ...

with another office in London, which is also its registered company address. As of the 6 March 2019, Tim Eggar is the chair.

History

In June 2013, the

UK government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_est ...

asked Sir Ian Wood of Wood Group to conduct a review into maximising the recovery of oil and gas from the

UK Continental Shelf The UK Continental Shelf (UKCS) is the region of waters surrounding the United Kingdom, in which the country has mineral rights. The UK continental shelf includes parts of the North Sea, the North Atlantic, the Irish Sea and the English Channel; th ...

. One of the recommendations of the

Wood Review Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...

was the creation of an independent

economic regulator A regulatory agency (regulatory body, regulator) or independent agency (independent regulatory agency) is a government authority that is responsible for exercising autonomous dominion over some area of human activity in a licensing and regula ...

for the sector. Subsequently the OGA was launched on 1 April 2015 as an

of the

Department of Energy and Climate Change The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom created on 3 October 2008, by Prime Minister Gordon Brown to take over some of the functions related to energy of the Department for Busin ...

. The Energy Act 2016, which received Royal Assent in May 2016, created the legislative framework to formally establish the OGA as a government company, limited by shares under the Companies Act 2006, with the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy the sole shareholder. The Energy Act 2016 also provided the OGA with new regulatory powers, including the ability to participate in meetings with operators, to have access to data, provide dispute resolution and introduce a range of sanctions such as enforcement notices and fines of up to £1 million. On the 6 March 2019, Frances Morris-Jones was replaced by Tim Eggar as the chairman of the authority.

Fracking

On 1 November 2019, following a report from the Oil and Gas Authority, the government called a halt to all

fracking Fracking (also known as hydraulic fracturing, hydrofracturing, or hydrofracking) is a well stimulation technique involving the fracturing of bedrock formations by a pressurized liquid. The process involves the high-pressure injection of "frac ...

in the UK "with immediate effect" and warned shale gas companies that it would not support future projects.

Corporate information

Name

On 1 July 2015, ''Oil and Gas Authority Limited'' was incorporated as a private limited company in

England and Wales England and Wales () is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. The substantive law of the jurisdiction is En ...

under the

Companies Act 2006 The Companies Act 2006 (c 46) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which forms the primary source of UK company law. The Act was brought into force in stages, with the final provision being commenced on 1 October 2009. It largel ...

, although following incorporation it remained dormant for

financial year A fiscal year (or financial year, or sometimes budget year) is used in government accounting, which varies between countries, and for budget purposes. It is also used for financial reporting by businesses and other organizations. Laws in many ...

2015-2016. Pursuant to the

Energy Act 2016 The Energy Act 2016 (c. 20) is a UK Act of Parliament relating to UK enterprise law and energy in the UK. It created a new Oil and Gas Authority, meaning that a quango rather than a government minister deals with the oil and gas industry. Conten ...

, ''Oil and Gas Authority Limited'' was renamed ''Oil and Gas Authority'' on 12 July 2016''.'' Under the Companies Act 2006, private limited companies are required to include the word "limited" in their names unless exempted; the Energy Act 2016 provided for such an exemption, which

came into force In law, coming into force or entry into force (also called commencement) is the process by which legislation, regulations, treaties and other legal instruments come to have legal force and effect. The term is closely related to the date of this t ...

on 12 July 2016. On 21 March 2022, the Oil and Gas Authority adopted the

trading name A trade name, trading name, or business name, is a pseudonym used by companies that do not operate under their registered company name. The term for this type of alternative name is a "fictitious" business name. Registering the fictitious name w ...

of ''North Sea Transition Authority'', although its legal name remains unchanged. In a

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

debate on 29 March 2022,

Caroline Lucas Caroline Patricia Lucas (born 9 December 1960) is a British politician who has twice led the Green Party of England and Wales and has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Brighton Pavilion since the 2010 general election. She was re-elect ...

accused the government of

greenwashing Greenwashing (a compound word modeled on "whitewash"), also called "green sheen", is a form of advertising or marketing spin in which green PR and green marketing are deceptively used to persuade the public that an organization's products, aim ...

over the change of name. Following this, on 31 March 2022,

Greg Hands Gregory William Hands (born 14 November 1965) is a British politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Chelsea and Fulham, previously Hammersmith and Fulham, since 2005. A member of the Conservative Party, he has served as ...

, Minister for Energy, Clean Growth and Climate Change, said in a written statement to the House of Commons that " e new name better represents the breadth of work it now undertakes and its pivotal role in supporting the UK upstream oil and gas industry to achieve net zero emissions."

Functions, powers, and property

Under Part 1 of the Energy Act 2016, function, powers, and property of the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy may be transferred to the Oil and Gas Authority by way of

statutory instrument In many countries, a statutory instrument is a form of delegated legislation. United Kingdom Statutory instruments are the principal form of delegated or secondary legislation in the United Kingdom. National government Statutory instrumen ...

Personnel

Part 1 of the Energy Act also provides for the Secretary of State to transfer staff working for the

to the Oil and Gas Authority. Since 2015, Andy Samuel has been

chief executive A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

, and since 2019 Tim Eggar has been

chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the group ...

of the

board Board or Boards may refer to: Flat surface * Lumber, or other rigid material, milled or sawn flat ** Plank (wood) ** Cutting board ** Sounding board, of a musical instrument * Cardboard (paper product) * Paperboard * Fiberboard ** Hardboard, a t ...

. In September 2021

Greenpeace Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by Irving Stowe and Dorothy Stowe, immigrant environmental activists from the United States. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth t ...

reported that eight of the OGA's 13 board members and senior managers previously worked in the industry, and three held sizeable shareholdings in oil firms. The OGA said their knowledge was vital in helping to regulate the sector.

Ownership

Oil and Gas Authority has one ordinary share, which since 2016 has been owned by the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. Every subsequent confirmation statement has shown no

shareholder A shareholder (in the United States often referred to as stockholder) of a corporation is an individual or legal entity (such as another corporation, a body politic, a trust or partnership) that is registered by the corporation as the legal o ...

changes.See Confirmation statements filed for Oil and Gas Authority for 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 a
Companies House

Notes

References

External links

Official website

Wood Review website
Department of Energy and Climate Change Executive agencies of the United Kingdom government Regulators of the United Kingdom Energy regulatory authorities Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy {{UK-gov-stub